When Sam Briefer, 23, graduated from West Chester University of Pennsylvania last year, the job hunt began. At first it was slow going. He scored a few interviews, but was never called back.

Then in March, shortly after connecting with Specialisterne—a Danish company whose U.S. arm works to develop the talent of autistic people—professional services firm EY (formerly Ernst & Young) offered Briefer a full-time position on its accounting team.

ASDetect is a video-led self-assessment app for the early identification of autism in children, and is based on comprehensive, rigorous, world-class research conducted at the Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre.

The research underlying this app has proven 81% accurate in the early detection of autism and other related developmental conditions.

La Trobe University partnered with Salesforce to develop an early detection app to empower parents and caregivers to identify autism earlier and more accurately than ever before.

The free app – called ASDetect – won the Project of the Year iAward in the Research and Development Category. Since its launch in February 2016, ASDetect has had more than 10,000 downloads, almost 6000 registrations and 4,000 assessments undertaken.

A New York café has been credited with turning around the lives of adults with autism by employing them, and thereby giving them a chance to feel “productive”, “happy” and “fulfilled”.

Long Island mother Stacey Wohl opened Cause Café earlier this year in a bid to provide her two non-verbal children Logan, 17, and Brittany, 19, with the opportunity to work in a traditional employment setting. Out of a total of 15 employees, Ms Wohl, 49, now employs eight on the autism spectrum.

“Just because they have a disability doesn’t mean they can’t do the same things we do,” she said.

It is now a great honour to collaborate with another like minded global organisation, SAP, that shares the same ethos and purpose around people with autism. This could not have happened without the vision of Thorkil Sonne, the founder of Specialisterne. Looking at the brilliant people we have since been able to hire, this is proving to be an untapped market that has enabled us to enhance our services lines and create greater value to our customers.

In this Dreamtalk, Dr Cheryl Dissanayake and Dr Josephine Barbaro from the Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre at La Trobe University will showcase a mobile app that has helped parents in Australia decide if their children are on the Autism Spectrum.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s ‘Dandelion Program’ draws on the special talents of people with autism – and now it has been selected for a Harvard Business School case study.

This case examines how diversity – in particular, neurodiversity – can be transformed into a competitive advantage; how people who were previously considered not suitable for employment can and have become key to an in-demand service offering. Thus, this important case provokes a discussion of the advantages of diversity, and also how some existing procedures might keep other organisations from realising these advantages too.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Dandelion Program

Trainee Test Analyst Job Opportunities

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) is one of the world’s largest and most successful IT companies. We know that our people and values are the most important elements in this success. We invest in your personal growth and development in an environment where you will be supported.
HPE’s Dandelion Program is recruiting people from the Autism Spectrum to be trained and work in the area of software testing based in Canberra.
Successful applicants will perform work for the Australian Department of Immigration and Border Protection. Applications are requested to fill these trainee Test Analyst roles.
As a level one Test Analyst you will be part of the HPE Testing Capability and will be trained to perform simple, medium and up to complex software testing activities as assigned by the HPE Dandelion Test Manager.
These roles will suit people with an interest in working with computers, processes and tools to ensure that developed software is fit for purpose and meets the needs of end users both within the department and its clients.
Successful candidates will start by learning and performing key skills required to work in the Department of Immigration and Border Protection team. He/she will also undergo training over time to be able to perform other more complex software testing related tasks.The candidate:

Must have a diagnosis of ASD

Must be aged 18 years or over

Must have Australian Citizenship

Will have to satisfy the suitability requirements of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection and Baseline security checks

Must be able to attend the entire 4 week assessment phase, which is paid

Should live within an easy daily commutable distance of Belconnen, ACT

Holding a tertiary qualification in a technical or business area is desirable, but not a prerequisite. If there is some experience in skills such as software testing, business analysis, computer programming, data analysis, or similar IT oriented tasks, this would be highly regarded, but not a prerequisite. The person must have a strong interest in learning and performing IT related tasks.
This is a great opportunity to become a part of a forward-thinking team with a commitment to providing high quality and innovative services, apply today.
To find out more information about the method of applying and the recruitment process and timelines for this great opportunity, please click on the link below: